The key hurdle is timing. Lawmakers will start filing re-election paperwork at the end of November, so casting a vote for gay marriage now would leave a month or so for challengers opposed to it to gather enough signatures to get on the March primary election ballot. Supporters acknowledge the added difficulty, even as they pitch the issue as an opportunity for lawmakers to plant their feet on what they say is the right side of history. Advocates point to public opinion that has shifted dramatically in favor of same-sex marriage in recent years, and note the summer’s landmark ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that struck down the definition of marriage as between a man and woman for the purpose of receiving federal benefits.

So it comes down to doing the right thing versus taking care of yourself, and politicians aren’t generally known for doing the former at the expense of the latter.

In related news, the Catholic Church is pulling funding from nine groups who endorsed marriage equality in the spring.

When a statewide immigrant-rights coalition endorsed same-sex marriage this past spring, 11 groups were given a stark choice by a Roman Catholic anti-poverty program: Leave the coalition, or lose their Catholic funding. Eight of the groups decided to stick with the Illinois Coalition for Immigration and Refugee Rights. Another group broke with both. All told, the nine groups gave up grants totaling nearly $300,000 from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. This week, some began scaling back projects that address domestic violence, affordable housing and immigration rights. The decision marks a rift between secular and Catholic leaders who had long been aligned in the push for immigrant rights in the United States. Church leaders say that chasm has been widened by a national movement to link gay rights and immigration reform.